


Sweet Tooth

by ArgentLives



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Grocery Store Shenanigans, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-25
Updated: 2015-10-25
Packaged: 2018-04-28 03:28:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,801
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5076049
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArgentLives/pseuds/ArgentLives
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Perfect,” she calls down to him, even though it’s most definitely not perfect, because he’s trying really hard to look anywhere but—<em>butt, oh God, what is he, ten?</em>—right in front of him, and he can feel his cheeks burning. Judging by the hint of a smirk he thinks he detects in her voice, she knows exactly what she’s doing. “I’m right in range.” </p>
<p>A strained <em>‘cool’</em> is all Cisco can manage, closing his eyes and counting down the seconds as she wiggles a bit in his arms, presumably to get in better position. This girl is evil. Amazing, but evil. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>[Cisco's got a cereal problem, and Iris helps him out]</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sweet Tooth

**Author's Note:**

> written for the prompt(s): “It’s not what it looks like…” and “You were trying to reach for a box of cereal and a whole shelf’s-worth of cereal boxes fell on you here let me help”

For the first time in a while, he finds himself facing a feat more difficult than the meta-human shenanigans they put up with every week. Seriously, it’s times like these he really wishes he were Barry, and not even because of the whole superpowers thing. Dude’s, like, over six feet tall. And Cisco’s not short, exactly, but that kind of height would be really useful right about now, considering what he’s up against. 

Speaking of which, he glares up at his enemy, cursing whatever genius thought it’d be a good idea to put the best cereals in the grocery store on the very top shelf, and towards the very back, in the cereal section of the breakfast items aisle, and tries to come up with a game plan. He’s not willing to settle for the tasteless, “Low-cholesterol! Whole Grain! No Sugar Added!” garbage on the shelf below it, the one he absolutely could reach and just be done with it already. He’s got higher standards than that,  _thankyouverymuch_ , and he’s going to get his hands on something that’s actually edible no matter what it takes.

Which is how he ends up on his tip-toes, straining real hard and reaching out his arm as far as it’ll go, fingers just barely brushing against the box he needs to move to the side to get to the one he’s aiming for. 

“Come on…come on…just a little…bit…further…ugh.” Cisco lets his arm fall to his side in defeat, rocking back on his heels. Looks like he’ll need a different approach—which is how he gets the bright idea of attempting to jump and grab the box, get it out of the way so that he can jump again and capture his target, hiding right behind it. Which is a valiant effort, but it ends up in less of a grab and more of a hard tap that predictably ends in disaster.

“Oh no…” he groans, stumbling back, as the box he’s just pushed over knocks into the one next to it on its way down. And then that one bumps into the next, and so on and so forth, like a really unfortunate domino effect. He squeezes his eyes shut, grits his teeth and hides his face behind a hand, the sound of cereal boxes cascading off the shelf and hitting the ground one after the other, each _thunk_  making him cringe. And then, as if his luck couldn’t possibly get any worse, he hears someone call out his name.

“Cisco?” He peeks through his fingers at the familiar voice. When he sees Iris West walking toward him, all stunningly tall-boots and tight-dress and confident strut as usual, her cart abandoned at the end of the aisle behind her, he drops his hand away from his face, runs it through his hair and suppresses another groan. He tucks his other hand into his back pocket and attempts to strike a seemingly-casual pose, fastens on his most innocent expression. Just his luck that she’d have to catch him at his most embarrassing, really. She takes in the scene before her, coming to a stop when she nearly tramples on a box of Cheerios that’s taken residence on the floor. “Um, wow, what happened here?”

“I, uh. It’s not what it looks like…I mean, I didn’t do…this…” Iris raises an eyebrow at him, just as another box teeters off the edge of the shelf and nails him right on the top of the head. “Okay, _oww._ ”

He rubs the sore spot on his head and watches through squinty-eyes as Iris bites her lip, looking very much like she wants to laugh. But bless her beautiful soul, she manages to hold it in, which is great, considering he already wants to die from embarrassment, vanish on the spot or maybe melt into a puddle right where he’s standing. _Clean up on aisle four!_ Ugh. Honestly.

“I was just trying to reach something on that top shelf and…well…let’s just say the odds really aren’t in my favor today,” Cisco picks one of the boxes up off the ground, mostly because he doesn’t think he can look her in the eye right now, and scrunches his nose in distaste. Bran Flakes. Whole-Grain. Sugar-free.  _Gross_.

“Ugh, looks like I’ll have to settle for this card-board tasting crap. All these boxes fall on me, and not one of them could have been Cinnamon Toast Crunch? Come on, man.” 

Iris plucks the box out of his hand and makes a similar face of disgust at it. He’s liked her for a while now, since she’s started popping up more and more often in STAR Labs. He doesn’t know her remarkably well yet, but from what he’s seen of her she’s always pretty pleasant, making small talk, actually laughing at his jokes (take that, Caitlin), getting things done right and generally brightening up the room. But it’s the face she’s making right now that really does him in, and when she lifts her gaze from the box to meet his he knows he’s in trouble. He’s got something of a soft spot for fellow sweet-toothed sugar fiends, and he’s feeling particularly mushy and gooey as he looks into her eyes, warm and full of quiet amusement. And maybe it’s not just because their mutual aversion to healthy foods.

“Yuck. I totally feel your pain—although I’m more of a Coco-puffs person myself. Or Chocolate Cheerios. Cookie Crisp. You know, basically anything with chocolate.”

“Good taste,” Cisco grins as Iris places the box back on the shelf closest to her, and he follows her lead, kneeling down to pick another—Fiber One, even worse—off the ground and place it on the shelf as she continues to do the same. He tries to keep his focus on what he’s doing, to keep his eyes off of her, but he’s not doing a very good job at it, and when she starts to speak again for a single, terrifying moment he’s afraid she’s caught him staring.

“I wish I could help with your…situation…but I’m not exactly a giant myself. I mean, I’m shorter than you. I doubt I’d be able to reach either.”

“No worries,” Cisco flashes her a smile, relieved, as they pile the boxes scattered all over the floor back onto the shelves—the one below the one they’re technically supposed to be on, because neither of them can make it to the next. “You’re helping me with this, so.”

“True, but…” Iris trails off, pursing her lips in thought. She glances at Cisco, and then up at the shelf, and back at Cisco again, only this time when she looks at him she’s got a strange new spark in her eye. “Oh! I have an idea.”

“What?”

“You can pick me up so that I can reach! Come on, we could totally tag-team it.”

“I—yeah, sure. Sure, that might work. Let’s do it,” he nods, taken a little off guard at the suggestion but totally down to try it. He squares his shoulders expectantly, bracing himself for her clamber onto his back or something, like, piggy-back style. He finds himself even more baffled when instead of moving behind him and grasping his shoulders like he expects, she moves so that she’s standing right in front of him, facing the shelves, head tilted up and eyeing a box of Cinnamon Toast Crunch. He blinks in confusion, unsure of what she wants him to do. “Umm…?”

Iris twists her neck to glance back at him over her shoulder, leveling him with an expectant look. “Well? What are you waiting for?” She gestures to her legs and then to the shelves in front of them. “Pick me up.”

“O-kay…” he gulps, because if she means what he thinks she means, this is going to be…interesting. He crouches down so that he can wrap his arms around her legs, wondering if she’s doing this on purpose—because, really, this is by far the most difficult way of going about this—takes a deep breath, and lifts her off the ground.

“Perfect,” she calls down to him, even though it’s most definitely  _not_  perfect, because he’s trying really hard to look anywhere but— _butt, oh God, what is he, ten?_ —right in front of him, and he can feel his cheeks burning. Judging by the hint of a smirk he thinks he detects in her voice, she knows exactly what she’s doing. “I’m right in range.”

A strained  _‘cool’_  is all Cisco can manage, closing his eyes and counting down the seconds as she wiggles a bit in his arms, presumably to get in better position. This girl is evil. Amazing, but evil. 

“Aaaand there—Got it!”

He doesn’t really trust himself to speak just yet, so he just sets her down carefully, lets her regain her balance as he attempts to regain any semblance of cool he has left.  _Get it together, Cisco_ , he chides himself, _Don’t be weird_.

Iris turns to face him, the box of Cinnamon Toast Crunch clutched tightly against her chest, and proceeds to hand it over, beaming triumphantly. Cisco’s voice is still much higher than he’d like it to be when he responds with a ‘ _Thank you,’_ although, thank god for small miracles, at least it doesn’t crack like it sometimes does when he’s feeling overwhelmed. She doesn’t leave immediately after like he sort of expects her to, but instead she hangs around as he deposits the cereal into his cart. She hovers there uncertainly, like she’s got something she wants to say but can’t quite put a finger on the right words yet. Cisco is about to ask, but then her face lights up like she’s figured it out, and he clamps his mouth shut to let her speak.

“You know, I was just thinking, as great as sugary cereal is, I think you need to invest in a proper breakfast soon.”

“Iris!” Cisco gasps, placing a hand over his heart in mock-offense. “I thought you were on my side here!” Iris laughs, the little corners of her eyes crinkling a bit as she does, and it’s so ridiculously charming that he instantly forgives her for her betrayal.

“Hey, I said  _proper_ , not healthy. How about we meet up at Jitters tomorrow morning? I’ll introduce you to my favorite kind of cronut, if you haven’t had it already. The most deliciously unhealthy and cavity-inducing breakfast pastry in all of Central City.”

There’s a funny, fluttery feeling of anticipation in Cisco’s stomach, and he knows it’s probably not just because of the prospect of good food. 

“I’d like that,” he responds with a grin to match hers, and yeah—it’s the company he’ll be in that’s giving him butterflies.

 

**Author's Note:**

> originally posted on my [tumblr](http://bisexualiriswest.tumblr.com/), as most of my prompt fills are.


End file.
